I. Magnin

I. Magnin & Company
Company type	Department store
Industry	Retail
Founded	1876
Founder	Mary Ann Magnin
Defunct	1994
Fate	Stores closed or converted; some locations sold to Saks Fifth Avenue and Macy's
Headquarters	San Francisco, United States
Area served	Western United States, Chicago, Washington, D.C.
Products	Luxury fashion and specialty merchandise
Parent	Federated Department Stores (later Macy's)

I. Magnin & Company was a luxury department store headquartered in San Francisco, known for its focus on high-end fashion and specialty merchandise. Established in 1876 by Mary Ann Magnin and named in honor of her husband Isaac, the business expanded throughout the Western United States, including regions such as Southern California, Arizona, Oregon, and Washington. During the 1970s, when owned by Federated Department Stores, I. Magnin broadened its presence to include markets in Chicago and Washington, D.C.

Origins

In the early 1870s, Mary Ann Magnin, originally from the Netherlands, and her husband Isaac settled in San Francisco. Mary Ann started the company in 1876 with a boutique offering lotions and upscale infant apparel, later branching into bridal fashion. The brand quickly earned a reputation for catering to an exclusive clientele eager for the newest Parisian styles. Throughout the 20th century, I. Magnin imported collections from leading fashion houses such as Jeanne Lanvin, Hattie Carnegie, and Christian Dior.

At the turn of the century, Mary Ann’s four sons became involved in the family business; three—John, Grover, and Sam Magnin—worked with I. Magnin, while Joseph Magnin established a separate retail venture.

The original store was destroyed during the 1906 San Francisco earthquake but reopened in 1912 at 50 Grant Avenue. By the 1910s, I. Magnin operated boutiques inside six upscale California hotels. Prominent locations included the Wilshire Boulevard branch in Los Angeles (opened in 1939) and the Union Square flagship store (opened in 1948), both celebrated for their refined style. Christian Dior famously dubbed the Union Square location the "White Marble Palace."

Los Angeles Expansion

Flora Magnin married Myer Siegel, who founded a department store under his own name in Los Angeles that eventually grew into a chain. Between 1897 and 1898, I. Magnin & Co. ran a retail outlet at 237 South Spring Street managed by Siegel. The store relocated to 251 S. Broadway in 1899 and was rebranded as "Myer Siegel" by 1904. I. Magnin later returned to the Los Angeles market with boutiques situated at the Maryland Hotel (Pasadena), Ambassador Hotel (Mid-Wilshire), a location at 6340 Hollywood Boulevard, and notably opened a landmark store at 3240 Wilshire Boulevard in 1939, designed by architect Myron Hunt.

Acquisition by Bullock's

In 1944, Bullock's of Los Angeles purchased I. Magnin. Through the late 1950s into the early 1960s, this combined entity expanded into Southern California suburban areas with Fashion Square stores opening in Santa Ana (1958), Sherman Oaks (1962), and Torrance (1965).

After a proxy contest in 1964, Bullock's-I. Magnin became part of Federated Department Stores but continued operating as separate divisions alongside Bullocks Wilshire. During the 1970s, I. Magnin extended its footprint into Chicago and Washington, D.C.

Transition to Macy's

During the 1980s, R.H. Macy & Company aimed to penetrate Southern California’s retail market by acquiring Bullock's, Bullock's Wilshire, and I. Magnin from Federated following a settlement with Campeau Corporation after an unsuccessful takeover attempt of Federated in 1988. Macy's consolidated these entities under Macy's California and rebranded seven Bullock's Wilshire stores as I. Magnin locations in 1989.

In 1991, Macy's announced a restructuring to form Macy's West/Bullock's division but filed for bankruptcy protection on January 27, 1992. Within two years, I. Magnin closed eleven stores—including the historic Bullock's Wilshire flagship on Wilshire Boulevard in early 1993—which was affected by financial difficulties compounded by the aftermath of the 1992 Rodney King riots—and shuttered its Oakland location by 1995.

Liquidation

In 1994, Federated Department Stores completed the purchase of R.H. Macy's following its bankruptcy, incorporating Macy's West and Bullock's as subdivisions. Before finalizing this acquisition, Federated ceased operations of the remaining I. Magnin outlets, transferring ownership of four stores (located in Carmel, Beverly Hills, San Diego, and Phoenix) to Saks Fifth Avenue. Additionally, six other locations (Palo Alto, Walnut Creek, Woodland Hills, Palm Desert, Newport Beach, and Palos Verdes) were transformed into specialized Macy's or Bullock's branches. This approach was consistent with the earlier successful 1991 transition of the I. Magnin store at South Coast Plaza into a Bullock's Men's specialty shop. The upper levels of the former I. Magnin Union Square location were incorporated into an expansion of Macy's Union Square flagship store.

Store locations

City	Location	Opened	Closed	Became	Notes
San Francisco single-store locations and flagship stores
San Francisco	144 Third Street				Operating since 1885
	848 Market opposite Fourth	Circa 1887	October 1895		Advertised as "Magnin's Pacific Underwear House" in 1887
	840 Market opposite Fourth	October 1894	1901
	Baldwin Block, 918-920-922 Market	March 11, 1901	April 17, 1906		Nearly 10,000 sq. ft., second entrance on Ellis Street; damaged during 1906 earthquake
	Van Ness at Bush	1906			Served as a temporary location after the earthquake
	Post at Stockton				Featured a French-inspired "costumes and wraps" room with mahogany fixtures and Louis XVI style décor; millinery annex added in 1911
	50 Geary Street	1912	1948
	135 Stockton Street	1948	1994	Macy's Union Square (1995–2018)
Early boutiques in hotels
Santa Barbara	Potter Hotel	January 6, 1912			Hotel destroyed by fire in 1921
Pasadena	Hotel Maryland	1913
Other Northern California stores
Carmel	Carmel Plaza	1960	1994		Approximately 10,000 sq ft.
Cupertino	Vallco Fashion Park	1976	1992	Express; later became Dynasty Chinese Seafood Restaurant
Southern California stores opened as I. Magnin
237 South Spring Street	1897	1898 or 1899
January 2, 1899	June 1904	Myer Siegel
6340 Hollywood Boulevard	April 1923
550 East Colorado Boulevard	1933	August 1949
9626 Wilshire at Bedford	1928	1947
3240 Wilshire Boulevard	February 10, 1939
9634 Wilshire Boulevard	1947	January 1995	Saks Fifth Avenue Men's Store	100,000 sq ft.
1415 State Street	1947
475 S. Lake Avenue	August 1949
7661 Girard Avenue	1954	1993
Fashion Valley	September 26, 1992	1993 or 1994	Saks Fifth Avenue, Forever 21
3050 Wilshire Boulevard	September 24, 1929	January 1995	Southwestern Law School
151 Palm Canyon Drive	October 18, 1947 (opened as Bullock's)	1992
Westfield Palm Desert	1987
830 North Michigan Avenue, Magnificent Mile	October 22, 1971	February 1991
Northbrook Court		circa 1991
Oakbrook Center		circa 1991
Biltmore Fashion Park		December 1994	Saks Fifth Avenue
(Washington D.C. area) White Flint Mall	August 11, 1978	June 1992	Borders Books & Music		81,000 sq ft; $10 million investment; approximately 150 employees; was the chain’s twenty-fourth location.
930 SW Sixth (Sixth and Salmon)	1962	1988
(601 Pine Street after relocation in 1953)	1926	1993

References